Texture renders the exterior surface of an article of jewelry more brilliant. Diamond cutting is a conventional jewelry making technique for creating texture surfaces on the surface of an article of jewelry made from a metal such as gold, silver, platinum and the like. Diamond cutting involves the use of a very sharp, knife-like instrument which cuts into the metallic surface of an article of jewelry. Essentially, the purpose of diamond cutting is to form light reflective surfaces in different orientations to reflect light in multiple directions to create the effect of a light kaleidoscope which results in a brilliant sparkle that enhances the beauty of the article of jewelry.
Many patterns may be created by diamond cutting each with a different and unique light kaleidoscope effect. Prior patents of the assignee of the present application describe methods for forming unique patterns on an article of jewelry by diamond cutting, which include pairs of intersecting grooves each surrounded by a plurality of grooves. They describe a method for forming an article of jewelry which includes mounting natural or man-made jewels such as precious gemstones, semiprecious gemstones and gem-like articles like enamel in designated positions within the unique pattern created to take advantage of the combination of the light Kaleidoscope effect of the pattern and the natural beauty of the jewels. Such a method results in an article of jewelry with a pleasing decorative pattern. However, due to the fact that a relatively high number of jewels must be mounted to achieve the decorative pattern, it is not cost effective to manufacture such articles of jewelry for large consumer markets. In the jewelry industry, combining precious or semi-precious stones with synthetic stones is well know to reduce cost. For example, it is well known to include a single diamond (precious stone) with a plurality of cubic zirconia (synthetic stone) to obtain an article of jewelry with a pleasing appearance, but a reduced cost, which renders the article of jewelry more suitable for a larger market. Such a method, however, still requires a mounting step for each individual stone resulting in an increase in the cost of each article.
It is thus desirable to obtain a pleasing decorative pattern by other methods and other materials that results in an article of jewelry for a wider market.